San Francisco Symphony names Elim Chan as its first female music director

The San Francisco Symphony has named Elim Chan as its next music director, making the internationally acclaimed Hong Kong-born conductor the first woman to lead the orchestra in its 115-year history. The appointment makes her only the third woman to lead a top-level American orchestra. Chan, 39, is scheduled to begin a six-year contract with the orchestra in September 2027, replacing Esa-Pekka Salonen after a two-year search.

“Every time I come here, there’s such passion and care in how the orchestra plays,” she told the Chronicle during a recent interview. “It’s very visceral from the first rehearsal. I can tap into it, and it just comes.”

Chan made her debut in Davies Symphony Hall in 2023, leading the Symphony in a world premiere by the American composer Elizabeth Ogonek, alongside music by Prokofiev and Tchaikovsky. The sparks were immediate, and her two subsequent appearances only deepened her relationship with the orchestra.

“The musicians are quick and professional, and they’re feisty,” she said. “They fight because they care about the music.”

The admiration between her and the musicians seems to have been mutual. “From her first week here, I thought she was just a phenomenal musician,” said violinist Jessie Fellows, a member of the search committee. “There are a lot of conductors, and many are similar to others. But her ideas are so original, and not just for the sake of being different.”

Symphony CEO Matthew Spivey said Chan was always in contention for the post of music director, which became vacant in 2025 when Salonen declined to renew his contract after five years at the orchestra’s helm. “Elim is the kind of conductor that sparks interest from the very beginning,” Spivey said. “From the very first performances, we recognized that there was something very special in this artist, and it’s been exciting to see that relationship grow and evolve over the time that she’s been here.”